


Safety In Your Arms

by shellygurumi



Category: My Engineer (TV)
Genre: Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Established Relationship, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Mainly just cuddles and snuggles and sweetness, Ram talks, Sleepy Cuddles, soft
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-04
Updated: 2020-05-04
Packaged: 2021-03-02 02:08:45
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,013
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23997280
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/shellygurumi/pseuds/shellygurumi
Summary: Ram just had a really rough day and is going through a lot of stress surrounding the situation with his father and what to do about it. So he seeks out King for some comfort.
Relationships: King/Ram (My Engineer)
Comments: 18
Kudos: 427





	Safety In Your Arms

**Author's Note:**

> This is a gift for my lovely friend Emily, who always, always cheers me on when it comes to writing. Thank you, my dear! I hope you enjoy it!

King and Ram had been dating for about a week when Ram had a very bad day. He slept badly the night before, had gotten into a fight with his father that morning, had a few things go wrong at school, and when he went to feed the stray dog, it was nowhere to be seen. King was busy taking an exam and wouldn’t be free for another hour, so Ram decided to wait for him at his condo.

Back when they started dating, King had given Ram a key to the place, letting him know that he could come there to be alone and have some peace, in case King’s home and secret little garden hideaway was too inconvenient. Or on days when Ram only wanted to be partially alone, away from other people, but not away from King.

Exhausted, both physically and emotionally, Ram entered the condo, taking off his shoes and setting his bookbag down. He walked past all those plants on the walls, on the tables and counters and shelves and everywhere. A little smile turned up one corner of his lips. Reaching out a hand, Ram gently stroked one of the hanging vines, then sighed. It wasn’t the same as being near King, but it was the closest he had right now.

Ram made his way to King’s bedroom and paused for a moment before entering. He had permission to be there, to do this, but it was the first time he had taken King up on the offer. Closing his eyes, he imagined King’s smiling face and comforting gaze, then nodded to himself. Inside the bedroom, he rummaged around just enough to find one of King’s oversized shirts. It was just big enough to fit Ram’s broader frame, and more comfortable than the button up and tie that made his school uniform. It had the added bonus of spelling like King, as well. 

Stripping out of his school uniform and neatly folding shirt and slacks before setting them aside, Ram put on that soft tee shirt, then climbed into bed. He scrolled through his phone a little bit, but his eyes felt heavy. It only took about ten minutes before Ram fell asleep, his phone on his chest beneath his hand. One arm stretched out along the bed, as if reaching for someone. 

* * *

King texted Ram when he finished his exam and left the class. He asked where Ram was and what he was up to, but the younger man hadn’t responded. Deciding he would drop off his school stuff and change before trying again, King headed to his condo. As soon as he opened the door, he noticed the shoes and bag that weren’t normally there. Of course he recognized right away that the bag was Ram’s. He smiled and looked up, wondering where the other man was.

“Ram? Ram?” King called out for him as he moved further into the condo, in between taking moments to gently stroke and pet his plants. He whispered little messages of love to each of the leaves and petals. When Ram didn’t answer his calls, King turned to look for him more properly. Surely he was somewhere.

The condo wasn’t especially big, so if he wasn’t in the living room or kitchen areas, and the bathroom door wasn’t closed, that just left one place: the bedroom. King opened the door and peaked his head in, then smiled. He saw Ram fast asleep, tucked into the bed, phone still clutched in his hand. Moving further into the room, King took a seat on the edge of the bed and reached out a hand to gently brush through Ram’s hair.

When his hand slid down to cup Ram’s cheek, the young man woke, eyes blinking up at King. His eyes were sad, tired, and full of unspoken words. By now, King was getting pretty good at reading those eyes, that face, and the emotions behind them. His smile turned sad as his thumb brushed over Ram’s eyebrow, smoothing it down. 

“Do you want me to lay here with you?” He asked the question softly, as if trying not to break the silence and sanctity of the room. Ram nodded. “Okay. Sit tight.” 

After brushing his thumb over Ram’s cheek, King stood from the bed. He quickly changed into more comfortable clothes. Glancing back at Ram, King caught the other man jerk his head away and the slightest blush tint his cheeks. He had been watching and got caught. King pretended not to notice, but smiled anyway. Then he climbed into the bed and scooted over to Ram’s side. 

Without a word, Ram turned over and threw an arm across King’s chest, moving in to hold onto him tightly. He hid his face in King’s neck and moved a leg over Knig’s legs. He was cuddling. Ram was snuggling into King’s side and searching for comfort there. This was a new development, and after King got over the initial surprise of the moment, he easily draped an arm around Ram’s shoulders and hugged him. Something must be wrong.

Running a hand through Ram’s hair, King began talking, in the way he always does when Ram is nearby. The way he does with his plants. “I guess you had a bad day, you were pretty tired, too. I called your name but you didn’t wake up. I also texted you when I finished my test.” He felt Ram tense up, so he rubbed his back and carried on, “But it’s okay, I understand why you didn’t respond now. Hard to reply to something when you’re asleep. I told you that you were always welcome here, and I’m glad you decided to come by. Must mean that you needed me, huh?” 

King tipped his head down, trying to see Ram. The younger engineering student lifted his head a little and looked up, he nodded. Ram lowered his eyes then, an expression of shyness clear as day to King. So he brought a hand up to Ram’s chin and urged him to look up again, “It’s okay if you need me. I’m here for you. If you want to just lay here like this, that’s fine. If you want me to keep talking, I can do that. Or if you want to tell me anything, I will listen.”

They stared into each other’s eyes for a long moment, then Ram gave another nod, slow and certain this time. King let his hand trail away from Ram’s chin and went back to stroking his back. There was a moment of comfortable silence between them, as King gave Ram the opportunity to speak if he wanted to, but being prepared to start speaking about anything in case he didn’t.

Much to King’s surprise, he did speak.

“My dad... we fought today.” Ram’s voice was soft, a little hurt. 

“Ohh,” King hummed knowingly, running his hand over Ram’s back. 

“Mm...” There was a beat, then Ram continued. He continued talking, explaining everything. Ram spoke in his own succinct and brief way. Compared to how much King could speak, it was very little, but compared to how much Ram usually spoke, it was volumes. 

As he spoke, King listened intently. He continued rubbing Ram’s back, running his hands through his hair, trailing his fingers over his shoulder. All of these little gestures reminded Ram that he wasn’t alone, that King was right there beside him. Listening. King didn’t think he had ever heard Ram say so much at once, even after they had started dating. He was in awe, this was a big deal. Ram trusted him, really trusted him, to be able to open up in this way. So King was sure to pay close attention to everything the younger man said.

It was heart wrenching, knowing what Ram was going through at home, the way it kept him up at night. The way he struggled with what he knew and trying to figure out what to do about it. All King could do was keep listening and comforting him. He held him close, gave him time, let him speak and seek assurance and have moments of silence between his words. King never interrupted him, didn’t force him to go on, didn’t try to provide words for him. He let Ram speak at his own pace, form his own words, and decide how much he wanted to share.

After saying all he wanted to say about his home situation, Ram changed gears and briefly explained his bad day at school, then huffed and stopped. He frowned deeply, then lifted himself up so he could look down at King’s face. Ram’s eyes were soft and sad and King stared up at him in wonder. The frown on his lips slowly smoothed, and then Ram glanced to the side, at nothing in particular. 

“Ram?” King asks, not sure what he’s up to. Those puppy dog eyes turned back to King, then he leaned down and softly kissed King’s lips. They both closed their eyes and leaned gently into it. King could feel his own heart beating a little faster, even when Ram pulled away, breaking the kiss. 

A shy but happy smile lit on Ram’s lips as he pulled back and King couldn’t help but smile right back at him.

“Thank you...” Ram said finally, settling back down into King’s arms, reclaiming his place there. “Your test today... How was it?”

King laughed silently, smiling more broadly than Ram. He turned his head to kiss his boyfriend’s forehead, then took over the conversation. It was his turn now, his turn to drown them both in words, words, and more words. Ram listened now, as he always did. He liked the sound of King’s voice, the steady softness of it. He was always content to just listen.

Occasionally, Ram would hum or say a word or two in response, especially if King asked him a question, but most of the time he was able to remain silent. He would nod or shake his head for easy questions, though, rather than speaking. While this went on, King kept touching Ram here, there, anywhere. He trailed his fingers along Ram’s arms and shoulders, over the borrowed shirt or bare forearms.

He found each of Ram’s tattoos and traced them, commenting on each of them. Talking about what kind of tattoo he wanted to get one day. Almost unconsciously, King wound up pushing Ram’s shirt up and searching for more ink on his boyfriend’s skin. It was innocent, truly, he just wanted to find the others. It wasn’t until he was met with Ram’s bare chest and abs that he really realized what he had done.

In that moment, it was King’s turn to blush and laugh softly at himself. He looked up at Ram’s face, finding a bemused expression there, and gently tugged the shirt back down. He patted a hand against those astonishingly firm abs and grinned. “Sorry, probably should have asked permission for that first.”

Settling back into their previous position of cuddling, Ram hugged King close this time. Both men laid on their sides, facing one another, foreheads pressed together, and looking into each other’s eyes. King raised a hand to gently run his fingertips across the lines of Ram’s face. Along his eyebrow, cheek bone, jaw, lips, to up and over his ear, then down his neck, over the dreamcatcher and gear tattoo. Ram closed his eyes, and sighed at those touches. 

“Do you like this?” King asked, barely more than a whisper.

Without opening his eyes, Ram nodded. 

“Then I should keep doing it?” 

“Mmm.” He nodded again, and pressed a hand against the small of King’s back, tugging him a bit closer. He swept his thumb back and forth there, eliciting a soft hum from King as a reward. 

They spent hours in bed together, no longer speaking, just enjoying the physical closeness of one another. They dozed off and woke up several times, so content where they were. This was peace. This was what Ram needed.

**Author's Note:**

> [Share on tumblr](https://shellygurumi.tumblr.com/post/617157939347750912).


End file.
